Author: Rob Dean (Page 4 of 9)

Missing Reels: “The Frighteners” (1996)

October 24, 2016 / Rob Dean

Missing Reels examines overlooked, unappreciated or unfairly maligned movies. Sometimes these films haven’t been seen by anyone, and sometimes they’ve been seen by everyone… who loathed them. Sometimes they’ve simply been forgotten. But in any case, Missing Reels argues that they deserve to be seen and admired by more people.

When most moviegoers hear the name Peter Jackson, they think of a sprawling fantasy adventure like he delivered with “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” trilogies. However, Jackson got his start with low budget works, first with the independently made horror comedy “Bad Taste” (1987) and then with the deeply profane Muppets send-up “Meet the Feebles” (1989). While popular in New Zealand, these were mainly cult films for international audiences who had to purposefully seek out these quirky and raunchy examples of genre by the then-little known Kiwi auteur. His first real brush with international acclaim came with “Dead Alive” in 1992 (also known as “Braindead”), which was a gory zombie flick that included some of the most gruesome, outlandish and hilarious effects seen on film since Sam Raimi’s “Evil Dead 2.” Gorehounds and horror fiends had found a new sensation with Jackson and reveled in the madness he was bringing to their screens and VHS rental stores.

The filmmaker really broke out internationally with “Heavenly Creatures,” his poetic tale of magical realism that centered on the dangerous romance between two (ultimately) murderous teen girls played by a young Kate Winslet and a young Melanie Lynskey. The film garnered acclaim outside of the genre crowd and proved that Jackson was a versatile filmmaker capable not just of incredible sequences (usually involving gore) but also of truly understanding the emotional depths of his characters.

Entertainment, Movies

Halloween horror comedies horror movies Michael J. Fox Missing Reels Peter Jackson

Ha-Ha-Horror: Why Horror and Comedy Go Together So Well

October 17, 2016 / Rob Dean

Laughing and screaming are not so different, when you think about it. Both are involuntary reactions to outside stimulus that betray the true emotion of a person. Yet when people talk about horror films, they rarely talk about the crucial element that comedy plays in crafting a successful scary movie. And while not every horror movie uses (or needs) comedy in its storytelling, especially those films that are more interested in cultivating an atmosphere of dread and doom, those that do tend to be crowd pleasers that deliver a more complete experience for the audience.

There’s always been a certain wicked sense of humor in horror, whether it’s the clever wordplay of Edgar Allen Poe or H.P. Lovecraft, the ironic morality tales of comics like “Tales from the Crypt,” or even Stephen King’s moments of levity in his gruesome tales of the macabre. And while many point to “Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein” as the watershed moment where comedy and horror collided, there are earlier examples in films like “Bride of Frankenstein” that have truly funny moments embedded within them. With the rise of a more cultivated viewership, filmmakers have gone on to inject more comedy into their horror fare. Part of this is a recognition of tired tropes and clichés, but part of it serves a real purpose in telling a scary story.

Entertainment, Movies

Halloween horror comedies horror movies

Vaudeville Villains: Why Hollywood has a villain problem

October 5, 2016 / Rob Dean

Stories are only as good as the problems their protagonist must overcome. The dramatic conflict that arises must truly be an interesting and formidable opponent that stops the hero from living a peaceful life or seeing his dreams fulfilled. To know a story is to know that central conflict, and in those stories where the conflict is perpetrated or predicated on the actions of another character, those are truly big shoes to fill for the antagonist. Or, put another, simpler way: stories are only as good as their villains.

True, the protagonists must be understandable and sympathetic to some regard, and their dreams must be easily grasped and shared by the audience. To have a blank slate as a hero is to have a large gap at the center of plot. But assuming that the hero is easily drawn and understood, their actions come about and their characters are revealed when drawn into conflict (and contrast) with the villain. It’s a pretty central tenet of storytelling, and yet one that has woefully been forgotten by Hollywood in the past few years. There have been exceptions, but by and large, while studios have been able to show a villain’s threat with greater ease thanks to CGI, rendering that villain interesting and memorable has proven far more difficult.

Entertainment, Movies

film villains movie villains The Joker

Missing Reels: “Bigger Stronger Faster*” (2008)

October 3, 2016 / Rob Dean

It will come as a shock to no one that I’m not much of an athlete or sports nut. Sidelined by asthma and an almost comical lack of coordination, I’ve always been an indoor kid who preferred his comic books and movies to getting out in the field and playing a game. And yet, even with that propensity for introversion and solitary activities, there’s one sport that I do follow: football. The season has just begun and already injuries are piling up, with the shadow of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) looming over the proceedings. Much like football is a battle of strategy and toughness, so too is the dichotomy for passionately loving the sport with the all too real thought that we’re watching men destroy their bodies and lives for our pleasure.

We ask a lot of our athletes, putting their health at risk on the field while maintaining some semblance of “role model” actions off it. But why? And for what? In the end, it’s a moral struggle about expectations, bloodthirsty crowds and entertainment that leaves us all with some serious questions. These questions don’t just extend to the (very real) possibility of CTE but also of performance enhancing drugs (PEDs). If we want our professional sports players to be at their best, then why do we chastise them for taking something that helps them reach that goal we (unfairly) demand?

Entertainment, Movies, Sports

Bigger Stronger Faster Missing Reels sports documentaries steroids

Coming Soon: A Moviegoer’s Guide to October

September 26, 2016 / Rob Dean

October is an interesting month for film releases. The blockbuster season is a distant memory and awards season is just getting started. Some festival favorites finally hit wide release, while others are chasing the spooky atmosphere of the season. However, there aren’t many major horror movies this month (and no, “Boo! A Madea Halloween” doesn’t count); instead, it seems that the dominant genre for October is adult thrillers. Sure, there’s a comedy and a drama or two in the mix, but mainly it’s thrillers aimed at grownups with twists, turns and some sophisticated action. Who knows if any of these will succeed at the box office, but here’s what’s on the docket for the month.

“The Birth of a Nation”

Who: Nate Parker, Armie Hammer, Aunjanue Ellis and Gabrielle Union
What: Nat Turner, a literate slave and preacher in the antebellum South, orchestrates an uprising.
When: October 7th
Why: There’s been a lot of discussion around “The Birth of a Nation.” First, there was tons of hype about the film coming out of Sundance, but more recently, the talk has become about writer/director/star Nate Parker’s previous rape allegations. For some, that’s a deal breaker and they won’t go see the film; others have learned to separate the art from the artist and will take the movie on its own merits (see Woody Allen, Roman Polanski, etc.). Based on word of mouth, the film is a harrowing, emotional experience that does a good job of connecting audiences to this historical event while finding the humanity amid all the horrible actions of the time period.